Once the formalities of the evening were completed Mid-Essex branch member, Tony Hogwood gave us an interesting and informative talk, illustrated by some superb slides, on visits made this year to the coasts and waterways of Europe. First port of call was Newcastle where he joined the 20,804 grt Jupiter of Fjordlines on a return voyage to the Norwegian west coast. Ports of call were at Stavanger, Haugesund and Bergen. A wide variety of ships were shown of all ages and pedigrees, with one vessel well over 100 years old. This area of Norway seems to specialise in the service and repair of many of the vessels involved in the offshore oil industry. Also shown were the ubiquitous ferries, from the standard double ended to the new �fast ferry�, that link islands and the mainland. Tony also showed us examples of the many ships seen on his visits to Antwerp, Rotterdam, and the Ghent canal. Unfortunately time overtook us and we had to curtail Tony�s programme, but we will look forward to next month when he will be back to complete the show.